Queen forced to ‘hide in bushes’ to escape ‘monster’ Palace visitor – ‘Too much for her’

QUEEN Elizabeth II has long been known for her composure on all occasions but Her Majesty was once forced to “hide in the bushes” to avoid chatting with an unwelcome Buckingham Palace guest, commentator Robert Hardman claimed.

The Queen has long been praised for her collectedness at all times despite the pressure she faces to ensure all royal visits take place without a hitch. Her Majesty has seen her patience, and royal protocol, on several occasions during her long reign but she was allegedly forced to hide once to escape one of her guests. Royal writer Robert Hardman suggested a controversial visit from the former Romanian leader had the Queen running for the bushes to avoid having to entertain her visitors.

Speaking to ITV documentary ‘Our Queen: Inside the Crown’, Mr Hardman recounted how news of the upcoming state visit of dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu had sparked criticism from the public, and concern about the Queen having to host him and his wife Elena.

The royal expert said: “The press started to question the foreign secretary David Owen, and were saying ‘why are we inviting this monster to come to Britain.”

The Queen and Prince Philip welcomed the couple upon their arrival at Victoria Station and treated them to a carriage ride back to Buckingham Palace.

Her Majesty maintained her composure as she appeared in public with Ceaușescu but tension rose during his stay at the palace.

The Queen was forced to “hide in the bushed” to escape one of her guests (Image: GETTY)

The Queen and Prince Philip welcomed the Ceaușescus at Victoria Station (Image: GETTY)

Mr Hardman continued: “She once told a lunch guest who in turn told me, on the occasion when they were staying she took the corgis out for a walk in the Palace gardens and she could see the Ceaușescus coming the other way.

“She thought ‘I really can’t face talking to them’, so the first and only time in her life, she actually hid in a bush in the palace gardens to avoid her guests.”

In her long reign, the Queen repeatedly faced criticism for going along with Government plans and welcoming controversial figures at the palace for state visits.

But Her Majesty was forced to welcome Ceaușescu after Romania pledged £300 million worth of aerospace contracts in a bid to boost the British economy.

Queen ‘can’t travel long distances’ reveals royal expert

The Queen was reportedly very unhappy about the visit of Nicolae Ceaușescu (Image: GETTY)

Her Majesty was cordial with the Romanian dictator while in public (Image: GETTY)

But Lord Owen, who was serving as Foreign Secretary when the Romanian dictator made his visit, said the trip could not be cancelled despite the unhappiness of both Queen and country.

Speaking to ITV, Lord Owen said: “The Queen puts up with many different people, but Ceaușescu was too much for her.

“She made that quite plain, she didn’t like that.”

The peer later admitted the whole visit had been a mistake and he insisted: “I try to pretend it never happened.”

The British Royal Family tree (Image: EXPRESS.CO.UK)

Her Majesty was also reportedly advised from French President Giscard d’Estaing to beware of the couple after they had allegedly behaved “like burglars” during a previous visit to France.

The French leader warned that the Romanian pair “had looted their quarters and had even hacked holes in the walls looking for bugging devices.”

In his book ‘Queen of the World’, Mr Hardman said Buckingham Palace took the advice to heart and made sure to remove a set of silver-backed hairbrushes from the Ceaușescus’ Belgian Suite.

Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescu were executed on Christmas Day in 1989 for the illegal gathering of wealth and genocide, becoming the last people to be killed by capital punishment in Romania before it was abolished 12 days later.